We had a snowy weekend around here. I was on the schedule to work at the hospital Thursday, Friday and Saturday but the floor that I work on ended up closing over the holiday break (I guess there aren't a lot of people, doctors or patients, that schedule surgeries the week of Christmas). They needed help on the 4th floor, Oncology, on Saturday. It wasn't too bad. To tell you the truth, I already feel like I've had to many days with nothing to do...

I got a new camera today. Dang those internet rumors about the killer sales at Circut City.
Just checking out all the new settings and everything. Isn't my dog pathetic?
I hope everyone had a happy Christmas, I know we did.

SNOW!

I made a special trip to Target for this movie today. Initially I made a video of myself singing the song along with some really awesome accompanying hand gestures but trust me when I say you will enjoy this much more. Or maybe this video is just slightly less embarrassing. Also, did you know that you can watch every song from White Christmas on youtube - I totally could have saved my $15!

This is Christmas to me. We've been watching a lot of movies on the floor in front of the tv lately. I have finals this week and I am not stressed out at all. I love the end of the semester when things start winding down and deadlines come and go. Right now I'm sitting in the kitchen; it's clean. I'm looking out the window at the Christmas lights on my house. I'm about to go over some notes and then I'll climb into my bed. It's freshly made with my clean flannel Christmas sheets. I sound pretty calm for someone that hasn't done any Christmas shopping, don't I. I love the end of the semester.

I went to Cost Plus today for my wrapping paper. I like the paper there. I like the paper at Pier One better but Russell was with me and when shopping with Russell it's best to get things done in as few stops as possible. Just trust me on this one. Plus I decided today that if there was only one store that I could shop at for the rest of my life, Cost Plus would be it. Yes, I love it that much.

So anyway, I have these hanging basket hooks in my second bedroom. Inside. Weird, right? I've been trying to think of something cool to do with them (because I'm afraid that if I attempt to pull them out the ceiling will cave in) and I totally found the answer at my most favorite store today. How cool are these lanterns? Someday. They will be mine. Oh yes, they will be mine.

I have nothing to say.

I've been on a mission, for some time now, to find a way to produce the perfect sugar crusted blueberry muffin top. Today I think I took a major step in the right direction. I bought a little scoop of turbinado sugar from the excellent bulk section at my grocery store. It's still not perfect but it's getting really close. I think I'm going to start mixing sugars now. Everyone puts butter on their blueberry muffins right?

I tried to make this cake from Bon Appetit as a thank you for my neighbor who kept an eye on Otis while we were out of town and it went terribly, horribly wrong. So bad. The white chocolate cream layer refused to whip up and eventually I opted to leave it out. When I started assembling the cake, without the extra layer, it was sliding all over the place. It was a total disaster. My kitchen wasn't that big of a mess when I made Thanksgiving dinner. Yikes.

I made my Mom's family clam chowder recipe this week but that deserves its own post - mostly because I have pictures.

This is what happens to me during holiday times. Just today I was hoping that I won't have to work on Saturday so I can make those caramels I made a couple years ago. Hoping that I won't have to work/thinking of ways to get out of it - same thing, right?

I thought of my Dad today when, on my way out the door, I grabbed a Coke Zero from the fridge and put it in my coat pocket.

We've taken care of the leaves in the front. The back? We've yet to tackle. 

I asked Russell why he raked all the leaves in to one big pile (in case it's been a while since you had to pick up leaves, bigger piles are harder). He shrugged and laughed at me. He just thought it would be funny. This picture doesn't do the pile justice. It's a big pile. You better believe I'll be looking for every excuse to avoid that chore. Car wash? I have to have one today. 

I wore my cap and mask home...

Today was crazy. Insane. Awesome. 

I went out to Caldwell, about 30 miles outside Boise, to check out their OR and day surgery unit. At first I was doing boring vital signs checks but then I got to do real things that nurses do. I started a couple IVs and I went with two patients in to the OR and I watched their surgeries. A bilateral mastectomy and a radical prostatectomy. Holy crap. I just keep saying in my head over and over again. How the heck am I going to figure out what kind of nurse I want to be if everything I get to try is totally awesome? I think I am supposed to have hated at least one thing by now. I can't even count how many nurses asked if I'd eaten breakfast. I guess they have a lot of students pass out - bad news. There was a CRNA in my prostatectomy that was totally quizzing me on all the drugs, what would you give if this happened. He was really smart. So that was fun. 

Let me just say (as if I need another reason to go vegetarian), underneath all that breast tissue? Just like a flank steak. Exactly. 

I hate those bell stamps. They are really no fun at all. My post office has this automated scale and stamp machine. You can go 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and you can use your debit card. This thing is the epitome of convenience. But you can only get those dumb bell stamps. 

I hate those stamps so much that I would rather go to my post office from the hours of 9-4 Monday through Friday and wait. In the line. Why is there always a line? Because dumb people like me hate those bell stamps? I don't know. 

Do I hate the bell stamps? Or do I just love the other stamps? I think it might be because some of the bell stamps on the sheet don't have the wavy edges on all 4 sides. I'm a crazy person, aren't I? Whatever. You just read an entire post about stamps... 

I made pickles this week. They are good. Real good. I told a friend at school about them and promised to share. That was before I tasted them. That jar was hard to part with. I'll think about bringing some home with me.

I had to turn on the heat today. I draw the line when the temp inside the house gets down to the 50's. We had our first frost last night and they are already talking about "snow in the upper elevations." The good? I turned on the heat and my house smells like Christmas now. That makes me a Las Vegan still, doesn't it?

So, mostly I like the fall when the weather starts changing but there is one thing I don't like about it. I hate it when the toilet seat is freezing cold in the mornings. It is a rude awakening, that's for sure.

Moving on.

I am writing a paper on issues related to contemporary childbirth and I was wondering if anyone wanted to volunteer to answer a few questions for me. What I mean to say is, does anyone want to volunteer now to avoid that uncomfortable phone call where I ask and you feel like you can't say no? (I just like to keep it real.) I'll let you read the paper when I'm done...

I am the laziest blogger ever. I just brought my laptop in to the kitchen and took a picture of this zucchini cobbler with photo booth. Getting out the camera, taking the picture, uploading it from the camera to the computer? WAY too much work. 

Okay so, we've got more zucchini than we know what to do with and we are officially sick of zucchini bread. Solution? Zucchini cobbler. I followed some of the advice in the comments (do you ever pay attention to those?) and removed all the seeds and I swear, it tasted just like apple cobbler. Just like it. With ice cream on top? Insane. 

Another thing. Did anyone else see this? A man jumps in to the ocean to punch a shark after it practically swallows his dog (and he's not even a very cute dog, maybe that's like saying someone's kid isn't cute, everyone thinks their own kid is cute). He actually saves his dog. 

I was thinking another thing. My frequent (probably inappropriate) use of parenthesis really says a lot about me, doesn't it? It is seriously hard for me to stick to a train of thought...  

It is slightly colder in my house right now than it is outside. But I will NOT turn the heat on yet.

I took care of a guy named Barry today. He kept saying, "thanks for being good to Barry" and "you be good to Barry and Barry will be good to you." Now I can't stop singing When You're Good To Mama from Chicago...

This is the best Panda Express fortune I've ever gotten.
If you haven't seen Nacho Libre, go watch it. Now.

I ran a 5K this morning. It was sponsored by the hospital that I work at and it was cheap so I did it. I've never run in a race before. Can I just say, it is seriously motivating when you run past someone (who cares if they happen to be walking). It hasn't rained in Boise in I don't know how long. It's been a while okay. Guess what happened this morning. Not just sprinkles, it was raining. And cold. I still didn't hate it. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm getting back into bed.

We're at home. 
Watching the BSU game.
Eating sweeties.

I love the fall.

I have a lot to tell you about school this semester but I have even more actual school stuff to work on so it might be a few more days before I can tell you all about it.

Otis manged to push through the screen door on our porch a while ago. So last week I went about reinforcing the screen but I forgot to latch it when I was finished. Russell heard a weird scratching sound and checked the front porch. It was Otis. We don't know how long he was gone or which neighbors he terrorized or how many times he was almost hit by a car. No idea.

It has been a pretty constant 68˚ in my house the last week or so. No AC. The windows are open. I think summer might be over for Boise. I'm in the market for a couple new sweaters.